


clan values

by sasukestorm (izukillme)



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst, Blood, Brotherly Affection, Canon Compliant, Death, Gen, happy birthday sasubae :))), i cried while writing ;w;, i wrote u some good good angst!!, this hurts a loooot, well. one sided
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-23
Updated: 2020-07-23
Packaged: 2021-03-05 08:41:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25467928
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/izukillme/pseuds/sasukestorm
Summary: Sasuke has always respected his clan’s traditions. Listening to your older brother is one of them.
Relationships: Uchiha Itachi & Uchiha Sasuke
Comments: 6
Kudos: 31





	clan values

**Author's Note:**

> Happy birthday, Sasuke-baby!! Here's some good ol' angst for you all on this wonderful day <3

_ Listen to your brother.  _

This is the cardinal rule that you grow up with. Your brother is older and you are taught to respect your elders, so you respect him, too. He is powerful, wise and always, always right, solely because he is your brother and you must listen to him. It’s not that hard, either; he loves you, so you know he knows what’s good for you, even when he asks you to eat your vegetables. (You grumble, but you do it anyway because he is your older brother and you must listen.) 

He comes home from a mission one day, and his face is all covered in blood. You tug at his shirt, whining, “What happened?”   
“Don’t ask, Sasuke,” says your mother from the kitchen. You ignore her, too consumed by curiosity—not worry, because you know your brother is too good for that to be his own blood.

“What  _ happened? _ ” you ask again, grabbing his hand—also slick with crimson—and yanking downwards. “ _ Nii-san! _ ”

“You heard Okaa-san, Sasuke,” he says, and he sounds tired. “Please don’t ask.”

You shut up immediately. If he tells you not to ask, you won’t because you are a good boy and you listen to your older brother like good boys do. You watch with curious eyes as he goes and cleans himself up, but you say no more as Mother calls you for dinner. You eat silently, not knowing what else to talk about—Mother casts you a strange look, but you don’t meet her eye, choosing to focus on your rice and curry.

“What was that about, Sasuke?” Mother asks later when she is tucking you into bed. You look up at her in confusion, and she elaborates, “You were so silent at dinner.”

It’s more than obvious to you why you did it—you don’t understand why she’s asking, but you explain anyway.

“Nii-san told me not to ask. Good boys listen to their brothers, so I listened to him,” you say plainly. Your mother looks surprised for a second, but then her face shifts into a soft smile and she laughs, bright and airy.

“Of course. You’re a good boy, Sasuke.” she says, ruffling your hair and placing a kiss on your forehead. You bask in the affection, lingering just a second longer than a boy of your age should; when she leaves, your eyes flutter shut and you drift off in an instant, floating on Somnus’ boat down the river to the land of dreams.

* * *

“Sasuke, don’t listen to your brother.” Your father’s voice is thin and strained as he hovers above you, almost invisible in the darkness of your bedroom. “Don’t listen to your brother, you hear me?”

“Yes, Otou-san,” you whisper; half-asleep, you don’t understand what he’s saying or why he’s saying it. Why wouldn’t you listen to nii-san? Isn’t that what good children do, and doesn’t your father want you to be a good boy?

You get it just as your eyelids slide shut.  _ Of course. I must be dreaming. There’s no way Otou-san would ever say that to me.  _

When you wake up, the memory is gone like a leaf in the currents of the Naka Stream. 

* * *

Your father tells you again (warns you again) a few weeks later when you master the Grand Fireball.

“Don’t be like Itachi,” he says softly. You tilt your head, confused, and start to ask why when he shakes his head.

“Just don’t.”

He walks off, and you stare at his retreating back, thinking,  _ I’ll never be like Nii-san… I’ll never be as good or as kind as Nii-san… so why is Otou-san telling me this? _

* * *

You run home, your feet slapping harshly against the pavement in your worry. You hate getting yelled at by your mother— _ oh,  _ you shouldn’t have stayed late for training, but you couldn’t help wanting to throw just one more kunai, wanting to win one more fight. 

That’s when your eyes fall upon the bodies.

There’s blood everywhere. It paints the walls of the Uchiha district, trickling down the fan symbols that decorate the roads. People are scattered across the place like rag dolls at such unnatural angles that no living being could possess.

_ It’s a massacre. I have to warn Okaa-san! _

You start to run, almost flying along the streets. You take the familiar turns without even thinking, racing down the road to the main house and barely registering the dead bodies littered around the district like day-old garbage.

You skid to a halt in front of the screen door, your eyes widening as you spot the liquid flowing thickly down the bamboo slats.  _ It can’t be…  _ your breath catches in your chest as you slowly push it open… 

Two familiar figures lie dead on the floor, and over them looms another one who you would recognise anywhere. But for the life of you, you don’t know him now. 

Your brother stands tall and dark like every figure from your nightmares, his hands dripping with scarlet. You understand where that blood must have come from— _ Okaa-san, Otou-san _ —and you want to scream but you  _ can’t  _ because it’s all stuck in your throat—

It can’t be him. It can’t be him. He can’t have done it, he just  _ can’t. _

“Nii-san,” you plead softly, tears starting to roll down your cheeks. “What happened?” 

He doesn’t answer, merely lifting his head, and his black eyes connect with yours—there’s not a hint of soul in them. He moves like lightning to pin you to the wall, his fingers digging into the soft flesh of your neck. You gargle against his deathly touch that paints your skin crimson, but you go still as soon as he opens his mouth  _ because you listen to your brother when he says something.  _

“Look into my eyes, Sasuke,” he whispers. You snap your gaze up to meet his immediately, a dozen questions in your head, _Who did this?_ _Why? How?,_ but they’re all swept away by the captivating red irises that have replaced his regular black. They aren’t normal Sharingan, you know; these have an inky shape in the middle, formed like a three-pointed shuriken, and as you look up into them you fall into a different world. 

_ Nii-san putting a sword to Izumi-nee’s throat. Nii-san slicing off a baby’s head. Nii-san stabbing straight through the hearts of Shopkeeper Iwase and his wife, and brutally massacring hundreds of others. _

_ Nii-san thrusting his blade into Otou-san. Nii-san barely blinking before shoving the sword into Okaa-san’s stomach.  _

_ Nii-san… murdering the clan! _

Your eyes open of their own will; he looks shocked, but covers it up quickly. However, you’re too wildly stunned to register it—almost in tears again, you gurgle through his tight grip, “Nii-san! You—why would you—”

“I wanted power,” is all he says, letting you down. You gasp, massaging your throat as you fall to the ground—he casts you a cool glance before flying out the door.

You don’t think for a second before  _ rage,  _ pure like diamonds, shoots through you. You grab some dropped kunai and start to chase, intent on catching your brother and delivering justice. You see him fleeing, and toss your knives; he deflects them as easily as one would push away a baby’s hand, and laughs. The sound cuts through your skin as if it was the same blade that killed your parents.

“Why?!” you scream. “Why would you do this?!”

“I told you…” he says in a bored voice. “Power. I wanted to test my strength…”

You can’t hold back the wetness in your eyes this time. It starts flowing down your face like a river, and you whisper through it, “I’ll kill you.”

“You have the potential to,” he says carelessly. “Dedicate your life to revenge. Train and practice and pour your soul into killing me—awaken this Mangekyō Sharingan like me. Kill your best friend like I did to get this power.”

“Shisui-nii,” you breathe, unable to bleieve it. “That was  _ you?”  _

He smirks. “Of course. Kill your closest friend like I killed mine… and then you might just be able to kill me.”

“As if I’ll listen to a traitor like you,” you hiss. He clicks his tongue, shaking his head mockingly.

“I thought you always listened to your brother.” 

And then he disappears into the night like a shadow, leaving you to fall to your knees and  _ scream  _ because… 

_ He’s right. I have to listen to my brother… _

_ I’ll get strong enough to kill you, Nii-san… because I always listen to my brother. _

* * *

Years later, when you’re forced to explain the bare bones of your clan’s massacre to Naruto, he asks you the stupidest question you’ve ever heard. 

“The dude that killed your clan told you to come after him and dedicate yourself to revenge?” he says, tilting his head in confusion. “Sounds ridiculous. Why the hell would you do that?”

You laugh, bitter and biting. 

“You idiot,” you say, almost fondly. “Don’t you know? In clans like mine, you have to respect your elders. And you have to listen to your elder sibling. That's how it is, and you won’t change my mind on it.”

Naruto shakes his head and rolls his eyes. “ _ Ridiculous,”  _ he says to himself. Your lips nearly twitch up into a smile—

_ Oh.  _ you realise.  _ He…  _

_ He’s my closest friend, isn’t he?  _

You shut your eyes and imagine it for a second. Putting your hand into Naruto’s chest, ripping out his heart—even the thought feels like you’re ripping out your own.

_ But you have to.  _

You have to, because your brother told you to… and good boys always listen to their brothers, don’t they? 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> please comment if you enjoyed~


End file.
